Magnetic conveyance system

ABSTRACT

A magnetic conveyance system comprising a support structure having a ferromagnetic capacity and a trolley moveable upon the support structure in a plurality of directions. The trolley may include a trolley frame and at least one attractor cell disposed on the trolley frame. The at least one attractor cell may comprise a housing and at least one magnet, at least one friction reducing load spreading device, and a load transfer member disposed within the housing. The magnet may provide a magnetic attraction force between the trolley and the support structure. The friction reducing load spreading device may comprise a plurality of bearing balls circulating within a reservoir and a channel formed by the load transfer member disposed within the housing. The load transfer member may also include a bearing surface wherein a portion of the plurality of bearing balls is disposed between the bearing surface and the support structure.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional PatentApplication No. 61/864,545 filed Aug. 10, 2013, the entire disclosure ofwhich is hereby incorporated by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This present invention relates to a magnetic conveyance system which canbe utilized in residential, commercial, or industrial applications thatprovides lifting and mobility assistance anywhere a related supportstructure is installed.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Two important factors in determining when an elderly or physicallydisabled person requires institutional care is when they (1) lack themental facilities to take care of themselves and/or (2) lack thephysical functionality to move about their living environments on theirown. In many circumstances, many people who lack the physical functionfor full mobility about their living environment have sharp mentalawareness. These mentally competent persons often resist being placedinto a full-time care facility or to have home-aids who have to bepresent twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, to ensure that theperson can access all necessary facilities in their living environment.These mentally competent persons only need a reliable and safe way forthem to move about their living environment in order to liveindependently. There are a few track-based mobility systems that can beinstalled in residential or institutional applications, but thesetrack-based systems limit the access points, positioning and travelpaths which a person can traverse while supported by the track-basedmobility system. Thus, there is a need in the art for a conveyancesystem which facilitates movement of a person receiving assistancethroughout substantially the entire living environment.

Track-based overhead conveyance systems are also utilized in hospital,institutional, commercial, and industrial environments to providelifting and/or conveyance assistance for human patients or otherarticles. Nurses often implement such track-guided hoist or conveyancesystems to assist with removing patients from a bed to go to a bathroom.Track-based overhead conveyance systems are also used as aids inphysical therapy to carry a certain percentage of the patient's overallbody weight for walking while recovering from an injury. Again, thetrack-based overhead conveyance systems limit the direction of traveland the locations which are accessible by a patient because the personor item being conveyed cannot travel to or access locations where thereis no track present on the ceiling or connected to the supportstructure. Thus, there is a need in the art for a conveyance systemwhich facilitates movement of a person or other item throughoutsubstantially the entirety of the desired spatial environment.

It is recognized that the above-identified shortcomings in patient orperson track-based overhead conveyance systems, including but notlimited to limited travel paths, limited access to areas of a livingenvironment, the inability for multiple objects to be supported and moveat the same time, may also be experienced in countless numbers of otherapplications. Such applications which use track-based conveyance systemsmay include industrial uses, manufacturing, auto service and repair,shipping and logistics, interior design, storage, warehousing,laboratory, brewing, photography, video and stage production, and manyother applications. As such, there is a broad need for a conveyancesystem which facilitates movement and/or positioning of any itemthroughout substantially the entirety of the desired spatialenvironment.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed toward a magnetic conveyance systemcomprising a support structure having a ferromagnetic capacity and atrolley moveable relative upon the support structure, wherein thetrolley comprises at least one magnet and at least one friction reducingload spreading device. Support structure may generally be asubstantially smooth and/or planar surface. In one embodiment of thepresent magnetic conveying system, the support structure may be aceiling. The support structure may be comprised of a plurality ofceiling panels that are installed over the area of an entire ceiling oronly a portion thereof. However, the support structure may also be afloor, wall, or other substantially smooth surface.

The at least one magnet is operable to exert a magnetic attraction forcebetween the trolley and the support structure. The ferromagneticcapacity of the support structure may be equal to or slightly greaterthan a desired magnetic attraction force provided by the at least onemagnet. The friction reducing load spreading device of the magneticconveyance system may act to separate the support structure and thetrolley by a clear distance to prevent the magnet from attachingdirectly to the support structure. In one embodiment, the frictionreducing load spreading device may comprise an open-ball-transferdevice. The open-ball-transfer device may comprise a plurality ofbearing balls circulating within a housing to provide one of loaddistribution and friction reduction.

The trolley may also comprise at least one attractor cell, the attractorcell may comprise a housing and at least one magnet and at least onefriction reducing load spreading device operably disposed within thehousing. The attractor cell may also include a load transfer member,wherein the load transfer member is positioned and suspended within thehousing to form a reservoir and a channel wherein the plurality ofbearing balls may circulate through the housing through the reservoirand the channel. The load transfer member may include at least onemagnet integrated into it, or it may be of solid non-magneticconstruction. Alternatively, a magnetic array comprising a plurality ofarranged magnets may be incorporated into the load transfer member. Theload transfer member may have a bearing surface and a portion of theplurality of bearing balls may be disposed between the bearing surfaceand the support structure to provide a reduced-friction interface. Theattractor cell may be connected to the trolley with an articulatingconnection that may essentially act as an independent suspension for theattractor cell relative to the trolley. The trolley may also include anautomatic or mechanical brake which prevents the trolley from movingrelative to the support structure or in a direction parallel to abearing surface of the support structure until the brake is released.

Other aspects and advantages of the present invention will be apparentfrom the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments andthe accompanying drawing figures.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings form a part of the specification and are to beread in conjunction therewith, in which like reference numerals areemployed to indicate like or similar parts in the various views.

FIG. 1 is a bottom perspective view of one embodiment of a trolley of amagnetic conveyance system in accordance with the teachings of thepresent disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a bottom view of another embodiment of a trolley of a magneticconveyance system in accordance with the teachings of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an attractor cell of a magneticconveyance system in accordance with the teachings of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of an attractor cell of a magneticconveyance system in accordance with the teachings of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the attractor cell of FIG. 3 cut along theline 5-5;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the attractor cell of FIG. 4 cut along theline 6-6;

FIG. 7 is a top perspective view of another embodiment of a trolley of amagnetic conveyance system in accordance with the teachings of thepresent disclosure;

FIG. 8 is a bottom perspective view of another embodiment of a trolleyof a magnetic conveyance system in accordance with the teachings of thepresent disclosure;

FIG. 9 is a section view of an embodiment of a brake of the trolley ofFIG. 7 cut along the line 9-9;

FIG. 10 is a side view of an embodiment of a ceiling panel of a magneticconveyance system in accordance with the teachings of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 11 is a section view of a ceiling system of the magnetic conveyancesystem of FIG. 12 cut along the line 11-11;

FIG. 12 is a perspective view of an embodiment of a magnetic conveyancesystem in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure;

FIG. 13 is a section view of an alternative embodiment of the attractorcell of FIG. 5 showing a friction reducing load spreading device that isnon-magnetic;

FIG. 14A is a top view of an embodiment of a friction reducing loadspreading device of a magnetic conveyance system in accordance with theteachings of the present disclosure;

FIG. 14B is a sectional view of the friction reducing load spreadingdevice of FIG. 14A cut along the line 14-14;

FIG. 15A is a top view of another embodiment of a friction reducing loadspreading device of a magnetic conveyance system in accordance with theteachings of the present disclosure; and

FIG. 15B is a sectional view of the friction reducing load spreadingdevice of FIG. 15A cut along the line 15-15.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The following detailed description of the present invention referencesthe accompanying drawing figures that illustrate specific embodiments inwhich the invention can be practiced. The embodiments are intended todescribe aspects of the present invention in sufficient detail to enablethose skilled in the art to practice the invention. Other embodimentscan be utilized and changes can be made without departing from thespirit and scope of the present invention. The present invention isdefined by the appended claims and, therefore, the description is not tobe taken in a limiting sense and shall not limit the scope ofequivalents to which such claims are entitled.

The present application is directed toward a magnetic conveyance system10 which may be disposed in an overhead manner as shown in FIG. 1 or maybe used in other horizontal or vertical orientations. As shown in FIG.1, an embodiment of the magnetic conveyance system 10 comprises theprincipal components of a trolley 12 and a ferromagnetic supportstructure 14 (shown as a ferromagnetic ceiling 14) upon which trolley 12is operable to translate in any direction that is substantially parallelto a bearing surface of the support structure 14. As further shown inFIGS. 1 and 2, trolley 12 comprises one or more attractor cells 16mounted on a trolley frame 18. FIG. 8 illustrates an embodiment whereintrolley 12 includes a cover 100 which protects the trolley frame 18 (seeFIGS. 1 and 2), attractor cells 16 (see FIGS. 1 and 2), and othercomponents.

FIGS. 1 and 2 show an embodiment of trolley frame 18 including plate 20having a plurality of arms 22 upon which an attractor cell 16 may bemounted. FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of plate 20 having three arms 22upon each of which an attractor cell 16 is mounted. FIG. 2 illustrates asimilar embodiment wherein plate 20 a includes two arms 22 and plate 20b also includes two arms 22, wherein each arm 22 has an attractor cell16 operably connected thereto. The embodiment of FIG. 2 includes twoplates 20 a and 20 b being connected by a link member 23 using one ormore articulating connectors 25. Each articulating connector 25 may be aspring-loaded connection, a viscoelastic or elastic grommet, a bushingor other element providing one or more degree-of-freedom movement.Generally, articulating connectors 25 provide relative displacementbetween the two sections of plate either through a pivot connection,linear displacement, or a multi-degree of freedom connection to allowrelative movement of the two plates 20 a and 20 b relative to linkmember 23 to accommodate variations in the bearing surface of thesupport structure. The tools and/or hanger 28 may be coupled to linkmember 23. Similarly, additional embodiments including more than twopairs of arms with attractor cells 16 coupled thereto as similarlydescribed (resembling a centipede) are within the scope of the presentinvention. There are other similar configurations a trolley 12 thatincludes two or more attractor cells.

Turning back to FIG. 1, plate 20 may include arms 16 to reduce theoverall weight of plate 20. However, plate 20 could be any shape such astriangular or rectangular in some embodiments. Alternatively, anembodiment not shown may include trolley frame 18 being a space-frameconstructed of one or more tension or compression frame elements tofurther reduce weight. The ferromagnetic support structure 14 preferablyprovides a smooth and/or planar bearing surface with ferromagneticproperties that the attractor cells 16 will be attracted to and moveupon.

FIGS. 1 and 2 show that attractor cells 16 may be coupled to trolleyframe 18 with one or more fasteners 24. Moreover, as shown best in FIG.1, fastener 24 may extend through a collar 26 that may provide a desiredspacing from the trolley frame 18 to the attractor cells 16. In oneembodiment, collar 26 may be made of a rigid material, or alternatively,may be a flexible or viscoelastic material that allows displacement,rotation, and/or articulation of attractor cell 16 relative to trolleyframe 18. In addition, one or more elastic or viscoelastic grommets 27(or washers) may be utilized in the connection instead of or in additionto a flexible collar to provide additional articulation at theconnection between attractor cell 16 and trolley frame 18. It ispreferred that attractor cell 16 is coupled to trolley frame 18 havingsome articulation and/or pivot capability to accommodate disruptions inthe smooth and/or planar bearing surface of support structure 14. Anarticulating connection facilitates even distribution of loads andretaining bearing balls in the friction reducing load transferringdevice 30 (as described below) upon attractor cell 16 engaging adiscontinuity in the bearing surface of support structure 14.

FIG. 1 also shows a hanger or tool 28 mounted on or coupled to trolleyframe 18. A person of a skill in the art will appreciate that trolleyframe 18 may be adapted for mounting and supporting any number of piecesof equipment now known or hereafter developed. Furthermore, anembodiment of trolley 12 (not shown) includes a hanger or tool 28 beingattached directly to an attractor cell 16 without a trolley frame 18which simplifies the design of an embodiment of the present system forsupporting lightweight fixtures or other items. There are a number ofvarious tools, machines, hangers and configurations thereof which may beutilized in the present magnetic conveyance system 10.

The trolley 12 may also incorporate load limiting devices (not shown)operable to prevent overload of the load limiting device which will notallow support of excess loads. Other embodiments (not shown) of trolley12 may include a load sensing system and an associated alarm to indicatethe trolley is overloaded; a power drive or motor system to assistlifting, lowering and traveling of objects to be conveyed; an on-boardcomputer for automatic guidance and conveyance to a desired location;on-board lighting; associated emergency fail-safe systems; arechargeable battery system; a wired or wireless remote control system;a braking or holding system; one or more anchor points for hoists andsuspended items and devices; and other features.

One embodiment of the attractor cell 16 comprises two separate systemsthat can operate separately on a common frame, or could more typicallybe combined into a single unit. The first system is a magnet or magnetarray of suitable strength that is attracted to the ferromagneticsupport structure 14 and the second system is a friction reducing andload spreading device that is in actual contact with support structure14. Friction reducing load spreading device 30 may support the magnet ormagnet array a distance from the ceiling surface at all times. FIG. 3illustrates one embodiment of the attractor cell 16 comprising frictionreducing load spreading device 30, a magnet, magnet array, ornon-magnetic member (see FIGS. 5, 6, and 13) under friction reducingload spreading device 30, contained in a housing 32. As shown in FIG. 3,friction reducing load spreading device 30 may include a bearing areadefined by a radius R.

FIG. 4 shows a similar embodiment of the attractor cell 16 illustratingthe disposition of a magnet or magnet array 34 within housing 32 with aportion of friction reducing load spreading device 30 removed. Themagnet or magnet array 34 may be mounted in such a way as to attract theceiling 14 either through or immediately adjacent to friction reducingload spreading device 30. Friction reducing load spreading device 30will be capable of providing a system with little resistance orhesitation of movement and/or turning in any lateral direction.

The magnet or magnet assembly 34 may be constructed by employing asingle magnet 36 as shown in FIG. 5. Single magnet 36 may be configuredas a conventional cup-magnet that is polarized on its opposite faces andmounted in an iron, steel or other ferromagnetic holder 40 that wrapsaround magnet 36 from a back surface 44 toward the front surface 42which produces an enhanced magnetic field sufficient to attract to aferromagnetic surface. Magnet assembly 32 may also include a bearingplate 49 disposed above the magnet 36 as shown. This configuration iscommonly used for a variety of holding applications and is desirablebecause it concentrates both poles of magnet 36 onto a single face orside and, thus amplifies the holding or attracting force applied bymagnet 36. Magnet or magnet assembly 34 may also simply be a north-southmagnet mounted without the holder 40 without the magnetic fieldenhancement. Bearing plate 49 may be made from a non-ferromagneticmetal, composite, polymer, or visco-elastic material.

FIGS. 4 and 6 illustrate another embodiment of magnet or magnet assembly34 comprising a magnet array 38 having an arrangement of permanentmagnets 46 mounted on a ferromagnetic back plate 48, for example, madefrom a ferromagnetic material like iron or mild steel. The permanentmagnets 46 may be arranged on back plate 48 with their pole facesreversed on adjacent magnets and mounted in a housing 41. Magnetic arraymay include spacers 47 disposed between magnets and a bearing plate 49to provide bearing surface and/or hold magnets 46 in place. For example,as shown in FIG. 6, permanent magnets 46 a have their positive poleupward and permanent magnets 46 b have their negative pole upward. Backplate 48 then functions much like the iron cup holder 40 of FIG. 5 forthe single magnet 36. Back plate 48 carries the magnetic fields of aback side 50 of the magnetic array 38 into the oppositely poled adjacentmagnets and concentrates the holding force on a front side 52 ofmagnetic array 38 that results in the front side 52 being a workingside. This configuration creates a high magnetic flux density on frontside 52. Magnet array 38 and disposition of magnets 44 can be adaptedand configured as needed to provide a desired holding strength and/orattraction force.

A back side surface 53 of back plate 48 may have little or no sign ofmagnetism as the magnetic field has been completely absorbed and turnedtoward the front side 52 or working side. The selection of the size,shape, thickness, and strengths of magnets 44 and the material andthickness of back plate 48 may be selected on one or more highlyvariable factors to provide a desired holding strength and/or attractionforce. For example, depending on the specific application, selection ofelements would be based, at least, on the following considerations: theworking load to be handled, any desired or required safety factor, theextent of an air gap required by attractor cell 60, and the magneticfield pattern reach. In general, the strength of magnet 36 or magnets 44of magnet array 38, when mounted and assembled, must be sufficient tosupport the desired or required design load through an air gap with adesired/required safety factor. Moreover, the thickness of the backplate 48, whether iron, steel, other steel alloy, or other ferromagneticmaterial, may be sufficient to not become magnetically saturated. If theback plate 48 becomes magnetically saturated, the magnetic field couldextend outward of the back plate 48, which may be undesirable in someapplications.

Attractor cell 16 is configured to provide the ability to undergomulti-directional movement in a plane direction parallel orsubstantially parallel to the supporting ferromagnetic support structure14, for example ceiling 14. As such, friction must be reduced betweenthe magnets 36 or magnetic array 38 and support structure 14 usingfriction reducing load spreading device 30. In general, frictionreducing load spreading device 30 is any configuration of componentswhich reduce the friction force required to slide trolley 12 upon abearing surface of support structure 14 and transfer the load created bythe magnetic attraction force to the support structure. In theembodiment shown in FIGS. 5, 6, 13, 14B, and 15B the friction reductionwill be accomplished with bearing balls 56 disposed between housing 32and the support structure (ceiling) 14. In some embodiments, bearingballs 56 provide friction reducing properties and the ability to changedirections of motion without the need of a turning system. In otherembodiments of friction reducing load spreading device 30 may includeone or more pads of a material that reduces the friction between thehousing 32 and/or magnet 34, and the support structure 14, such asreduced or low friction polymers. Other alternatives include one or morecasters and/or wheels disposed between the trolley frame and the supportstructure, mechanically steerable wheels, or one or a plurality ofsingle ball transfers described in more detail below.

Four examples of friction reducing load spreading device 30 that may beutilized with the system 10 of the present invention in order to reducefriction resisting multi-direction movement of the trolley 12 aredescribed in detail herein. However, additional configurations withinthe spirit of the ball support devices described herein are also withinthe scope of the present invention. One embodiment (not shown) is aconventional single ball-transfer device which is commonly available ina variety of configurations. They provide a single load carrying ballpartially presented above a housing within which a plurality of smallerbearing balls are rolling and re-circulating to support the largerexposed ball and to pet nit it to roll in any direction with lowresistance.

These conventional single ball-transfers support a load only at a singlepoint of contact on the main load carrying ball, resulting in a singlepoint of contact on the supporting surface that is very small. Thisconfiguration produces a high concentration of pressure over a verysmall area of the bearing surface of the support structure. Althoughconventional single-ball transfers are capable of supporting fairlyheavy loads, they can exert damaging forces on the bearing surfaceswhile rolling across them. The pressure exerted at the point of contactagainst a flat contact surface can be crushing at equivalent to severalthousand pounds per square inch, which is sufficient to forge a grooveinto a soft steel plate. Even if the main ball is polymeric, the contactpressure and force exerted remains high for large loading.

Accordingly, the support structure, when using the conventionalsingle-ball device needs to be at least as hard as the main ball of theconventional ball-transfer or the loads must be very low to preventdamage to the surface rolled against. This requirement makes theconventional single-ball device useful in very light duty or lightload-bearing type systems because the magnetic attraction of theattractor cell 16 needn't be so great as to cause unusual stresses ordamage to the support structure 14 from the pressure of the balltransfers employed. Such applications may include, but are not limitedto lightweight objects such as lamps and other lightweight fixtures.

FIGS. 3, 4, 5, 6, 13, 14A, 14B, 15A, and 15B illustrate embodiments offriction reducing load spreading device 30 being an open-ball-transferdevice (“OBT”) 54. OBT 54 will be configured optimally when its bearingsurface is shaped as a round, fully radiused disc. However, other shapesare within the scope of the invention. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, OBT 54includes a plurality of inter-contacting bearing balls 56 that separateand create an air gap 68 between a bearing surface 58 of attractor cell16 and bearing surface 59 the support structure 14. OBT 54 also includesa reservoir 60 for storing a volume of bearing balls 56 and an annularchannel 62 which allows the bearing balls 56 to travel from an engagedposition 64 at an interface 70 between bearing surface 59 of supportstructure 14 and bearing surface 58 of attractor cell 16. Bearing balls56 are not contained or held in relative position to one another and mayroll freely in any direction. The quantity or density of bearing balls56 positioned at interface 70 between bearing surface 58 of attractorcell 16 and bearing surface 59 of support structure 14 is very high andis maintained at that density by the fact that they are held in a closedrecirculating system comprising the plurality of bearing balls 56disposed in engaged position 64, reservoir 60 and channel 62, whereinthe system has a fixed volume. Movement of bearing balls 56 is generallycaused by forced displacement of adjacent balls 56 in the fixed volume.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, an embodiment of reservoir 60 has a depth toaccommodate one row of bearing balls 56 that allows, for any directionof travel of the attractor cell 16, bearing balls 56 to follow aflattened circular flow path. Reservoir 60 and channel 62 have a cleardimension slightly greater than the diameter of the bearing balls 56.This configuration is preferable as it requires less force to displaceand cause the movement of the bearing balls 56 in reservoir 60 andchannel 62 to circulate across the engaged position 64. Alternatively,other embodiments (not shown) may be utilized which include reservoir 60having a volume sufficient to house more than one layer of bearingballs. Yet another embodiment may include reservoir 60 being an annulargroove disposed in an inner surface 78 or 86 of housing 32, wherein theannular groove has a cross-sectional shape and volume sufficient tostore a sufficient number of bearing balls 56 so as to provide asufficient supply of bearing balls 56 to bearing surface 58 of attractorcell 16. This eliminates the need to suspend a load transferring member72 within the housing 32 like the embodiments shown in FIGS. 5 and 6.

As shown in FIG. 5, the magnet 36 and holder 40 comprise a loadtransferring member 72 a. As shown in FIG. 6, the plurality of magnets46, back plate 48 and front plate 49 comprise another embodiment of loadtransferring member 72 b. An alternative embodiment shown in FIG. 13includes load transferring member 72 c being a non-magnetized metal orpolymer member. Each load transferring member 72 a, 72 b and 72 c have abearing surface 58. As shown in FIGS. 5, 6 and 13, load transferringmember 72 a, 72 b, and 72 c may be mounted within housing 32 so thatbearing surface 58 is a distance “D1” from the bearing surface 59 of thesupport structure 14.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, housing 32 may comprise an upper housingmember 74 and a lower housing member 76 that are removably orpermanently coupled together. Upper housing member 74 comprises an innersurface 78, an outer surface 80, a top surface 82, and a bottom surface84. Lower housing member 76 includes an inner surface 86, an outersurface 88, a top surface 90, and a bottom surface 92. In FIGS. 5 and 6,an embodiment of housing 32 includes the outer surfaces 80 and 88defining a substantially circular and cylindrical shape. However, othershapes are within the scope of the present invention. Inner surfaces 78and 86 align at the transition between upper and lower housing members74 and 76 as the width of the bottom surface 84 of the upper housingmember 74 is substantially similar to a width of the top surface 90 ofthe lower housing member 76 at the transition. As further shown, innersurfaces 78 and 86 are generally curved in the portions of the innersurfaces 78 and 86 that are opposite outer surfaces 80 and 88. FIGS. 5and 6 show this curvature being an arch and it may be substantially asemi-circle. These curved shapes allow for smooth flow of bearing balls56 within channel 62 and reservoir 60 formed in part by the innersurfaces 78 and 86 of the upper and lower housing members 74 and 76. Asfurther shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, inner surface 78 of upper housing member74 curves inwardly thereby creating a ramped transition portion 94 ofupper housing at the intersection of inner surface 78 and top surface 82of upper housing member 74.

This configuration of housing member 32 allows load transferring member72 a or 72 b to be coupled to a portion of an inner surface 86 of lowerhousing member 76 opposite the bottom surface 92. Load transferringmember 72 a or 72 b may be coupled to housing 32 by any number offasteners and/or spacers sufficient to carry the required load for aparticular attractor cell 16 and accurately position the loadtransferring member 72 within housing 32. However, the fasteners and/orspacers are preferably distributed within housing 32 to minimally impedethe flow of bearing balls 56 within reservoir 60. Load transferringmember 72 a or 72 b is suspended a distance inside the inner surface 86of lower housing member 76. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, load transferringmember 72 a or 72 b and inner surface 86 may have complimentary shapesso that when load transferring member 72 a or 72 b is disposed inhousing 32, reservoir 60 and channel 62 of substantially constantdimension are formed between inner surface 86 and an outer surface 96 ofthe load transferring member 72 a or 72 b. The shapes of outer surface96 of load transferring member 72 a or 72 b and inner surface 86 oflower housing member 76 are preferably curved so as to provide smoothflow channels for the bearing balls 56. Load transferring member 72 c ofFIG. 13 may be similarly arranged.

In operation, bearing balls 56 in the engaged position 64 roll betweenthe bearing surface 58 of attractor cell 16 and bearing surface 59 ofsupport structure 14 to reduce friction and resistance to lateralmovement. The bearing balls 56 leaving the engaged position 64 frombetween the bearing surfaces 58 and 59 wherein they engage rampedtransition portion 94 of upper housing member 74 which guides thebearing balls 56 to roll off and fall, are pushed by the succeeding orfollowing exiting balls into the channel 62 and reservoir 60. Thebearing balls 56 are pushed along freely under no load until, by virtueof volume displacement, they circulate through the channel 62 andreservoir 60 and are thus re-deposited in engaged position 64 betweenbearing surfaces 58 and 59. The circulated bearing balls 56 are thenavailable to again reduce friction and resistance to motion at theinterface 70. This arrangement permits the balls to continuouslycirculate from the engaged position 64 through channel 62 and reservoir60 and back to the engaged position 64 automatically and continuouslyregardless of the direction of motion or changing of direction of OBT54.

The bearing balls 56 employed in OBT 54 are preferably plastic, Delrinor nylon to reduce wear and marking of the ceiling surface and becausethey have no magnetic properties themselves. Other materials, includingmetals such as aluminum, stainless steel, or even softer plastics suchas Teflon or even hard rubber balls could work depending on theapplication. It will be appreciated that load transfer member 72 a, 72b, and 72 c may include a bearing surface 58 having an appreciable areawherein a significant portion of the area is covered with bearing balls56. Thus, depending upon the effective bearing area and the diameter anddensity of bearing balls 56, the bearing load per ball could be as lowas a few ounces when used in a system that might support 500 lbs. ormore. This configuration allows trolley 12 to translate on a supportstructure 14 such as a ferromagnetic ceiling panel that has an aestheticsmooth surface either covered in paint or a polymeric surface coatingwithout causing excessive wear or damage to the ceiling finish.

FIGS. 14A and 14B illustrate an alternative embodiment of frictionreducing load spreading device 30 being OBT 54′ that includes aplurality of bearing balls 56 disposed in a raised engagement position64 to engage bearing surface 59 of support structure 14 and a slightlylowered annular reservoir 156 surrounding the engagement position 64 ofthe bearing balls 56. Bearing balls 56 in engagement position aredisposed in engagement position 64 to provide an air gap 68 between atop surface 154 of housing 32′ and bearing surface 59 of supportstructure 14. Thus, as bearing balls 56 in engagement position 64translate relative to the housing 32′ upon the housing 32′ slidingrelative to support structure 14, bearing balls 56 exiting theengagement position 64 similarly engage and force the displacement ofthe bearing balls 56 in reservoir 156, which causes a circulation andreplacement of bearing balls 56 into and out of engagement position 64due to displacement of the bearing balls 56 in a fixed volume.

Another alternative embodiment shown in FIGS. 15A and 15B includesfriction reducing load spreading device 30 having an OBT 54″ wherein aload transferring member 72 d is an annular ring disposed and suspendedin housing 32″. A magnet or magnet assembly 34 may be disposed insidethe inner circle of the load transferring member 72 d. In other words,load transferring member 72 d may surround the magnet or magnet assembly34. As best shown in FIG. 15B, magnet or magnet assembly 34 may be heldwithin a housing 40 and/or received into housing 32″. Bearing balls 56are similarly disposed in OBT 54″ wherein they engage bearing surface 59of support structure 14 in engagement position 64 and circulate throughreservoir 60 and through channels 62 as the attractor cell 16 translatesrelative to support structure 14. Bearing balls 56 may be similarlydisposed to define an air gap 68 between a top surface 158 of the magnetand/or a top surface 160 of housing 32″. This embodiment facilitatesplacing the surface of the magnet 34 closer to the bearing surface 59,thereby increasing the effective magnetic force exerted upon supportstructure 14 by the magnet 34.

The basic functional criteria of an OBT is that a reservoir of bearingballs is in communication with the engagement position of the bearingballs through proximity or a channel so that movement of the ballsresults in a circulation of the bearing balls into and out of reservoirduring translation of the attractor cell in any direction. Further, thebearing surface 58 of the load transferring member 72 (FIGS. 5, 6, 13and 15B) or the housing 32′ (FIG. 14B) in the engagement position shouldbe smooth and free from any obstructions to facilitate ball movement.

Friction reducing load spreading device 30 can be employed in variousways to reduce friction and resistance to motion in the presentconveyance system 10. One is by incorporating friction reducing loadspreading device 30 into an attractor cell 16 as described above andmounting an attractor cell 16 or multiple attractor cells (see FIGS. 1and 2) on the trolley frame 20. Smaller attractor cells 16 and more ofthem is a preferred method of compensating for irregularities in surface59 of support structure (ceiling) 14. The attractor cells 16 aredesigned to have some degree of articulation from horizontal provided byits mounting method on the trolley frame 20 to help alleviate issuesresulting from inconsistencies in the flatness integrity of the ceilingsurface. As described above, when multiple attractor cells 16 are beingemployed, the multi-degree articulation of each attractor cell relativeto the others is preferable.

FIG. 7 illustrates another embodiment of trolley 12 that includes atrolley frame 18 having a plurality of distinct magnets or magnet arrays98 disposed between and/or adjacent to the plurality of attractor cells16. In this embodiment attractor cells 16 may include the load transfermember 72 including magnet 36 (FIG. 5) or magnet array 38 (FIG. 6).Alternatively, the attractor cells may include the load transfer member72 being simply a non-magnetic plate and friction reducing loadspreading device 30 with no magnetic attraction to only provide areduced-friction load transfer to support structure 14 wherein onlymagnets or magnet arrays 98 provide the magnetic attraction force.

A sealing device (not shown), either active or inactive, could beincorporated into the top surface 82 of upper housing member 74. Thesealing device may close the air gap 68 between housing 32 and supportstructure 14, thus sweeping away and preventing any intrusion of dirtinto friction reducing load spreading device 30 and/or OBT 54 to preventwear from contamination occurring. The sealing device may also helpcontain bearing balls 56 and prevent them from exiting the system in theevent of a discontinuity in bearing surface 59 of support structure 14.Additionally, another embodiment not shown may include bottom surface 92of the lower housing member 76 having open ports with an open meshcovering (not shown) on the ball side to allow the discharge of dirt andforeign particles through the open mesh due to down draw from gravitywithout allowing the bearing balls 56 to fall through. These additionalconfigurations may provide a self-cleaning system at a low cost. Activesystems could also be incorporated that would pass a cleaning belt ordisc across the back surface of the reservoir side of the recirculationchamber that would wipe the bearing balls clean periodically. Other airand vacuum systems could also be incorporated to accomplish cleaning ifneeded.

Trolley 12 may include additional features like a brake 102. FIG. 9illustrates one embodiment of a brake 102 which may be incorporated intotrolley 12. FIG. 9 show brake 102 including a brake magnet assembly 104,a shaft 108 having one end coupled to magnet assembly 104, when shaft108 is moveable within a sleeve 110 that is coupled to the trolley frame18, a brake lever 112 operably connected to shaft 108 opposite themagnet assembly 104, a brake cable 114 coupled to the brake lever 112,and a brake control mechanism (not shown) for pulling or releasing thebrake cable. As shown in FIG. 9, sleeve 110 may include a flange and athreaded outer surface wherein a nut engages the threads and may betightened to secure sleeve 110 onto trolley frame 18. Shaft 108 may alsohave a threaded end opposite magnet assembly 104 wherein a nut engagesthe threads and may be tightened to secure shaft 108 within sleeve 110.Magnet assembly 104 may include a housing 116, a magnet 118 disposed onor received into a top surface 120 of the housing 116, a brake pad 122disposed on an exterior face 124 of magnet 118 to increase the lateralfriction resisting lateral movement of the trolley 12 on the supportstructure 14. Brake pad 122 may be elastic, viscoelastic, or othersimilar material. One embodiment includes brake pad 112 being rubber.Brake control mechanism may be a mechanical lever similar to those usedon bicycles and wheel chairs, a servo motor mechanism, or othermechanical or motorized mechanism.

In operation, a pull on brake cable 114 by a brake control mechanismcauses either a linear displacement or a rotation of brake lever 112which effectuates a downward translation of shaft 108 and magnetassembly 104 relative to sleeve 110 thereby disengaging the brake pad122 from bearing against bearing surface 59 of support structure 14.Thus, trolley 12 is free to move in any direction substantially parallelto bearing surface 59 of support structure 14. To apply brake 102, thebrake control mechanism is caused to release the cable, wherein themagnetic force of magnet 118 is attracted to the ferromagnetic supportstructure 14 thereby causing translation of shaft 108 and magnetassembly 104 relative to sleeve 110 toward and ultimately bearingagainst the bearing surface 59 of support structure 14. Otherconfigurations of braking systems having a similar effect are within thescope of the present invention.

One or more embodiments of the trolley 12 may also include an automateddrive system (not shown). Such an automated drive system may include adrive wheel engaging the bearing surface 59 of support structure 14 thatmay be driven by one or more motors, such as servo motors. The automateddrive system may include a wired or wireless control system which allowsa user to control the movement and direction of the present conveyancesystem.

Further, one or more embodiments of the trolley 12 may include anoverload protection or prevention devices (not shown). These devices mayincorporate a load calculating device such as a scale or other devicewherein upon the application of a certain load applied, an alarm maysound or the system may engage a brake to prevent movement of the load.Alternatively a fuse member may be incorporated which fails upon theapplication of too great of a load, thereby rendering the presentconveyance system inoperable. A number of notices, alarms, and/ormeasuring systems are within the scope of the present invention.

The support structure 14 (the ceiling as shown in FIGS. 1, 8, 10, and11) provides the primary functionality of being ferromagnetic andproviding a substantially smooth and/or planar surface over whichtrolley 12 may translate in any direction substantially parallel to thesmooth surface. Support structure 14 also serves as an element in theload bearing structure of the building from which objects can besuspended and conveyed using the present conveying system 10. Thesupport structure 14 will generally have to include a strongferromagnetic material or property proximate the outer (or bearing)surface 59. Mild steel has been successfully tested, but a more properalloy that can withstand the constant transitioning from magnetized tonon-magnetized, as the trolley moves across the surface without becomingresidually magnetized itself, may serve better. One such material may becold rolled non grain oriented silicon steel (“CRNGO”), as it isproduced for its soft magnetic (reluctance to remain magnetized)characteristics. However, the present invention is not limited to acertain material and any ferromagnetic material may be implemented.

In one embodiment (not shown) support structure 14 may simply be a steelor iron plate secured to the underlying structural support members ofthe building. This embodiment can become weight and cost prohibitiveupon the conveyance of large loads which require thick solid plates.Another embodiment of support structure 14 comprises a ceiling includinga plurality of structural ceiling panels 124. As shown in FIG. 10, oneembodiment of a ceiling panel 124 of support structure (ceiling) 14.Ceiling panel 124 may comprise an outer ferromagnetic layer 126, anupper outer layer 128 and a filler layer 130. In one embodiment, theouter ferromagnetic layer 126, the upper layer 128 and the filler layer130 are all bound together by an adhesive or resin. Ceiling panel 124 ispreferably a load bearing, structural panel configured to carry thedesign load capacity of the present conveyance system 10 betweenstructural supports. As shown in FIGS. 1, 11, and 12, when utilizing aceiling 14 as the support structure, the ceiling 14 may be comprised ofplurality of ceiling panels 124. Ceiling panels 124 are preferably aslight in weight as is practical. Material weight is relevant to costsand ease of installation. Ceiling panels 124 or sections thereof may beengineered toward the lightest and most easily commercialized form.Ceiling panels 124 may be painted or powder coated to provide anaesthetically pleasing appearance. Alternatively, in another embodiment,ceiling panel 124 may also include a thin harder outer wearing surfacewith or without ferromagnetic properties such as 300 series stainlesssteel, anodized aluminum, or even a hard polymer coating for appearancepurposes. However, any smooth, flat surface could feasibly be employedas a surface for the trolley 12 to ride upon and attract through to theferromagnetic layer 126.

Turning back to FIG. 10, outer bearing layer 126 may be one or moresheets of a ferromagnetic material as described above. Alternatively,outer bearing layer 126 may be a ferromagnetic coating applied to fillerlayer 130. The total thickness or gauge of outer bearing layer 126 maybe selected to sufficiently absorb the entire magnetic field generatedby trolley 12 and not much more, particularly because any redundancy inthe thickness of the outer bearing layer only adds cost and weight tothe ceiling tile 124 with no appreciable benefit. The flatness of theouter bearing layer 126 and its alignment with adjacent ceiling tiles124 is also preferably substantially smooth and/or planar to allow forthe trolley and its attractor cells to easily traverse the entireceiling 14.

Upper layer 128 may be one or more sheets of any substantially rigidmaterial. Upper layer 128 may be any sheet metal, such as steel,aluminum, or may be substantially rigid polymeric material. Upper layer128 need not be ferromagnetic. An embodiment (not shown) may includeupper layer 128 having raised ribs or a raised center portion to providea more rigid panel. Filler layer 130 may be made from any materialsimilarly used in building products. Some embodiments may include arigid or substantially rigid foam or honeycomb. Some embodiments mayinclude wood-based sheet materials like plywood, OSB, MDF or particleboard. New lightweight composite board may also be utilized. Fillerlayer 130 may be one or more thin sheets of such material. The fillerlayer 130 will need to be sufficiently strong in tensile and shearcapacity to support the pulling forces from below and to distribute thembetween the top layer 128 and bearing layer 126 to the top skin layer.In one embodiment, a single modular ceiling tile 124 may be sixteen (16)inches square and preferably weigh ten (10) pounds or less. However,ceiling panels 124 may have any length, width, and thickness feasible tofacilitate manufacturing, installation, and/or desired load capacity.

Support structure or ceiling 14 is preferably a substantially smooth,flat and/or planar surface. One method of producing the flatnessintegrity preferred in the ferromagnetic surface of the panels has beenbuilt and tested successfully. This method consists of laminatingseveral relatively thin layers of the ferromagnetic mild steel materialtogether as bearing layer 126, in combination with a core material withanother very thin stabilizing layer of sheet material as upper layer 128with another sheet material being filler layer 130. The sheet materialof upper layer 128 may be metal and the sheet material of filler layer130 may be plywood, but other sheet materials are also within the scopeof the invention. The composite ceiling panel layers can be assembledand bonded to one another simultaneously with an adhesive system such asepoxy, which would cure while the layers are held under pressure againsta dead flat surface. This has been done using vacuum bagging techniques,but may more simply be performed under any compression loading such as amechanical, hydraulic, air, or other type of compression applyingmechanism, for example dead weight, a hydraulic press, or a compressionroller. This process results in a very flat surface because it waspossible to form the thin sheet layers tightly against the flat formingsurface and allow for curing. A much thicker plate would require muchheavier materials and expensive machining processes to obtain the sameflatness. In addition, formation of ceiling panels 124 using the aboveprocess allows for one or more connection elements to be bonded and/orintegrally formed into the ceiling panel 124 during formation ifdesired.

As shown in FIG. 11, ceiling panels 124 of ceiling 14 may be installedon a typical wood-frame ceiling framing layout. However, ceiling panels124 may be mounted to substructure of any steel, concrete, wood, orother combination thereof using known techniques. As shown in FIG. 11,ceiling panels 124 may be coupled or fastened directly to ceiling joists132 using a fastener such as a bolt, nail or screw. In addition, clips136 may be used. Shims 134 may be required to create a smooth and/orflat bearing surface. In addition, clips 136 may include a verticaladjustment capability allowing the position of the panel to beadjustable. Ceiling panels 124 may include a tongue and grooveengagement 138 or may have an overlapping interaction 140 as shown tofacilitate the alignment of the panels for a smooth surface.

As further shown in FIG. 11, an embodiment of ceiling 14 may includelight or other fixtures 142 disposed between joists 132 and undersheathing layer 144 as shown. The fixture 142 may include a light 146contained with fixture 142 wherein a Plexiglas, polycarbonate or otherclear material cover 148 is exposed with a ferromagnetic grid ordiffuser 150 incorporated therein so that there are no “dead” spots onthe ceiling. The Plexiglas, polycarbonate, or other clear material cover148 would be installed so as to provide a smooth transition between theceiling panel 124 and the fixture 142. In addition, if there areprotrusions in the surface due to fixtures like ceiling fans, otherlight fixtures, etc., a curb or bumper 152 may be installed on ceilingpanel 124 and/or ceiling 14 to prevent trolley 12 from running into thefixture. When installing the ceiling, a removal panel (not shown) may beinstalled or configured so as to be easily removed so that trolley 12may be moved to this tile, and the tile can be easily removed with thetrolley 12 attached to allow for removal and/or services of trolley 12.Alternatively, one or more removal panels may be non-ferromagneticmaterial wherein a removable curb or bumper prevents the trolley frommoving onto this panel during operation, but when it is desirable forthe trolley to be removed, the curb or bumper can be removed and thetrolley may be slid onto the non-ferromagnetic panel wherein trolley 12can easily be removed from support structure 14. Other embodiments ofceiling panel may be suspended from the support structure similar toconventional drop ceilings, but with an engineered system to carry thestructural load of trolley 12 and supported elements.

Support structure 14 may be a ceiling, wall, floor, or any other surfaceor member. It is also within the scope of the present invention toprovide an embodiment for temporary use and/or which may be portable. Inthis embodiment, a “temporary” substructure may be constructed withadditional column supports spaced around a perimeter and/or the interiorof the room with a beam system designed to carry the desired loadsupported by the columns. The ceiling structure or support structure 14may be installed on the beam system. This embodiment may be desirable inresidential application as it maintains the original finishes intact sothat upon removal, no significant construction costs are required touninstall the system and return the home to its original finishes.

In use, there are a number of applications for embodiments of thepresent conveyance system 10, with an example for residential orinstitutional uses in the conveyance of elderly, injured, and/orphysically disabled persons who need mobility provision or assistance.For example, as shown in FIG. 12, an embodiment of the presentconveyance system is shown in a room 200 of a home, hospital, or nursinghome. Room 200 includes support structure 14 being a ceiling 202comprising ceiling panels 124 installed above the entirety of the livingenvironment. FIG. 12 also shows a second room or hallway 204 which alsoincludes support structure 14 being ceiling 206 comprising ceilingpanels 124 that are installed over the entire room. A smooth and/orseamless transition 208 between the ceiling 202 and ceiling 206 isshown.

As shown in FIG. 12, trolley 12 is disposed on ceiling 202. A user 210may wear a harness 212 which is connected to a hoist 214 disposed ontrolley 12 by a cable or strap 216. Hoist 214 may be operable by wiredor wireless controls and may be capable of carrying all or a portion ofthe weight of the user 210. Hoist 214 may lift the user 210 off theground. User 210 may use a mechanical brake release handle 218 disposedon an end of brake cable 114 to free trolley 12 from a fixed or brakedposition. Release handle 218 may include other controls to operate thehoist 214 or any other functions desirable, such as controls for motorsto move trolley 12 on ceiling 14. If user 210 releases the brake bysqueezing the brake handle 218, then trolley 12 may be laterally movedon the ceiling 202 anywhere in the room 200. This is a significantimprovement over systems that require a track. In addition, due to theroom 204 also having ceiling 206 with a smooth transition 208, the user210 may walk with assistance provided by conveying system 10 from room200 to room 204. There is no limit as to the movement of user 210 withinthe room or a single story building as long as support structure 14 isinstalled as a smooth ceiling throughout the structure. Similarly, anurse or home health aide can use the hoist 214 to lift a patient andthen the nurse or home health aide can utilize the controls to releasethe brake and assist or move the patient by themselves. Further FIG. 12shows the removal panel 220 which in one embodiment may be easilyremoved or in another embodiment may be a non-ferromagnetic materialprotected by a curb or bumper. Removal panel 220 facilitates the easyremoval of trolley 12 from its engagement with the support structure 14.

Moreover, the present magnetic conveyance system 10 also allows for morethan one object to be supported simultaneously using multiple trolleys.Particularly advantageous is that multiple objects/users may besupported or suspended from the support surface and each objet/user maysimultaneously have full accessibility of movement over the entiresupport surface as long as the support surface has been designed tocarry the loading pattern. To prevent an overload of the ceiling/floorabove, the minimum spacing between users may be controlled by utilizinga spacing mechanism disposed on a trolley such as a fence to ensure aminimum spacing. For example, multiple patients in a hospital may besupported using the present magnetic conveying device 10 and eachpatient will have full access to any area in which the ceiling has beeninstalled. Thus, any users may pass each other in a hall going the sameor opposite directions, be in the same treatment room, or in thecafeteria and all the while having unfettered access to any portion ofthe rooms which have the ceiling. This flexibility is not realized by anexisting conveyance system. Moreover, this flexibility and feature alsolends to the use of the present magnetic conveyance system 10 inmultiple settings, applications, and industries.

It will be appreciated that, in addition to human mobility applications,the magnetic conveyance system 10 of the present application has manyother applications. In general, magnetic conveyance system 10 providesan alternative surface to which objects can be anchored to or suspendedfrom. Magnetic conveyance system 10 provides multiple surfaces, inaddition to a floor, which can be used to position and hold objectsproviding a significant improvement in the flexibility in the layout ofobjects in a room. For example, equipment in medical procedure rooms maybe suspended from the ceiling wherein each piece of equipment is mountedon its own trolley. This application will free-up floor space in themedical procedure room. The magnetic conveyance system 10 may be used inindustrial application to convey products from station to station duringmanufacturing, and move heavy objects around a manufacturing orpackaging plant using only one operator or using a power unit controlledby manual operators or automated control systems, such as by robots.

Other uses of magnetic conveyance system 10 of the present invention maybe the layout of commercial meeting spaces. Moveable wall panels may besupported by one or more trolleys and wherein the wall panels can bemoved and selectively positioned in any location of a room having theferromagnetic ceiling panels. Magnetic conveyance system 10 can also beused to hang shelving, art, lighting, equipment, signage, and/orinteractive information in residential, commercial exhibit, orlaboratory applications wherein the items may easily be repositionedanywhere in the room using one or more trolleys. Another foreseeableapplication of the present magnetic conveyance system is in theatricaland movie sets, video production and/or photography environments wherethe location of lighting, props, filters, cameras, and other objects aredesired to be moveable and easily repositioned, but held securely inplace at the desired location during use.

The present magnetic conveyance system 10 allows many objects notnormally mounted on the ceiling to now be mounted above magnetically.Special trolleys to allow easy positioning and locking in place ofinanimate objects is a simple offshoot of this technology. Moreover, thetechnology may be useful for securing and moving heavy objects easily ona floor in such applications as operating rooms wherein the operatingtable can be magnetically fixed to the floor using the brake, but canthen be easily moved about the room for cleaning or reconfiguring usingthe friction reducing load spreading device.

As is evident from the foregoing description, certain aspects of thepresent invention are not limited to the particular details of theexamples illustrated herein. It is therefore contemplated that othermodifications and applications using other similar or related featuresor techniques will occur to those skilled in the art. It is accordinglyintended that all such modifications, variations, and other uses andapplications which do not depart from the spirit and scope of thepresent invention are deemed to be covered by the present invention.

Other aspects, objects, and advantages of the present invention can beobtained from a study of the drawings, the disclosures, and the appendedclaims.

I claim:
 1. A magnetic, conveyance system comprising: a supportstructure defining a bearing surface and having a ferromagneticcapacity; a trolley operably connected to said support structure anddisposed for movement on said support structure in any directionsubstantially parallel to said bearing surface, said trolley comprisingone or more magnet and one or more friction reducing load spreadingdevice, wherein said friction reducing load spreading device comprisesan open-ball-transfer device, and said open-ball-transfer devicecomprises plurality of bearing balls disposed to circulate within ahousing of said open-ball-transfer device; and wherein said one or moremagnet exerts a magnetic attraction force between said trolley and saidsupport structure to operably connect said trolley to said supportstructure.
 2. The magnetic conveyance system of claim 1 wherein aportion of said plurality of bearing balls of said friction reducingload spreading device contact said beating surface and separate saidsupport structure and said magnet by a clear distance.
 3. The magneticconveyance system of claim 1 wherein said ferromagnetic capacity of saidsupport structure is equal to or greater than a desired magneticattraction force provided by said one or more magnet.
 4. The magneticconveyance system of claim 1 wherein the magnetic attraction forcebetween said trolley and said support structure is sufficient totransfer an operational load from said trolley to said supportstructure, wherein the operational load comprises at least the mass ofsaid trolley.
 5. A magnetic conveyance system comprising: a trolleydevice having at least one magnet for generating a magnetic attractionforce sufficient to adhere said trolley to a bearing surface of asupport structure and at least one friction reducing load spreadingdevice for bearing against a bearing surface of a support structure toseparate said at least one magnet a clear distance from a bearingsurface of a support structure, distribute the magnetic attraction forceover an area of a bearing surface of a support structure, and reduce afriction force for effectuating a movement of said trolley devicerelative to a support structure in at least one direction, wherein saidreducing load spreading device comprises all open-ball-transfer device.6. The magnetic conveyance system of claim 5 wherein said trolleycomprises at least one attractor cell, said at least one attractor cellcomprising a housing wherein said one or more magnet and said at leastone open-ball-transfer device are disposed within said housing.
 7. Themagnetic conveyance system of claim 6 wherein said open-ball-transferdevice comprises a plurality of bearing balls free to circulate withinsaid housing, and said attractor cell further comprises a load transfermember, said load transfer member disposed within said housing to form areservoir and a channel for said plurality of bearing balls to circulatetherethrough.
 8. The magnetic conveyance system of claim 7 wherein saidload transfer member comprises said one or more magnets.
 9. The magneticconveyance system claim 7 wherein said load transfer member has abearing surface and wherein a portion of said plurality of bearing ballsare disposed between said bearing surface and said support structure.10. The magnetic conveyance system of claim 5 wherein saidopen-ball-transfer device comprises a plurality of bearing balls free tocirculate within said housing.
 11. Tie magnetic conveyance system ofclaim 5 wherein said trolley further comprises a brake.
 12. The magneticconveyance system of claim 5 wherein said trolley device furthercomprising a trolley frame having at least three arms, each arm havingone or more magnets and one or more friction reducing load spreadingdevices disposed thereon.
 13. The magnetic conveyance system of claim 5further comprising at least three friction reducing load spreadingdevices radially disposed equidistantly around a perimeter of saidtrolley frame and at least three permanent magnets, at least one of saidat least three permanent magnets being disposed between each of said atleast three friction reducing load spreading device.
 14. The magneticconveyance system of claim 5 further comprising: a support structuredefining a bearing surface and having a ferromagnetic capacity; and saidtrolley operably connected to said support structure by the magneticattraction force, said trolley disposed for movement relative to saidbearing surface in any substantially parallel to said hearing surface.15. The magnetic conveyance system of claim 14, wherein the supportstructure consists of a plurality of thin layers of a ferromagneticmalarial laminated together.
 16. The magnetic conveyance system of claim15, wherein the ferromagnetic material is silicon steel.
 17. Themagnetic conveyance system of claim 5 wherein the magnetic attractionforce between said trolley and said support structure is sufficient totransfer an operational load from said trolley to said supportstructure, wherein the operational load comprises at least the mass ofsaid trolley.
 18. The magnetic conveyance system of claim 5 saidopen-ball-transfer device comprises a plurality of bearing balls free tocirculate within said housing.
 19. A magnetic conveyance systemcomprising: a support structure having a ferromagnetic capacity; atrolley moveable upon said support structure in a plurality ofdirections, said trolley comprising a trolley frame and at least oneattractor cell disposed on said trolley frame; said at least oneattractor cell comprising a housing, and at least one magnet, at leastone friction reducing load spreading device, and a load transfer memberdisposed within said housing; said magnet providing a magneticattraction three between said trolley and said support structure; saidfriction reducing load spreading device comprising an open-ball-transferdevice, wherein said open-hall-transfer device comprises a plurality ofbearing balls; and said load transfer member disposed within saidhousing to form a reservoir and a channel, wherein said plurality ofbearing balls being free to circulate through said reservoir and saidchannel, and wherein said load transfer member has a bearing surface anda portion of said plurality of bearing balls are disposed between saidbearing surface and said support structure.